


Alkimia Fables - A Lore Bible

by AlkimiaFables, Elliott Dunstan (rokosourobouros)



Category: Alkimia Fables, Original Work
Genre: Gen, Index, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-22
Updated: 2020-10-23
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:28:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,230
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27152467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlkimiaFables/pseuds/AlkimiaFables, https://archiveofourown.org/users/rokosourobouros/pseuds/Elliott%20Dunstan
Summary: Alkimia is a verse very much like our own, yet in its own ways very different; the disenfranchised have powers of their own, faeries flicker between the worlds at their own whim, and the old gods use human squabbles as a spectator sport, placing bets here and there on the next development. This document is a reference bible, keeping track of the lore, characters and story progression of the shared world Alkimia Fables.





	1. Introduction - Elementals

**Author's Note:**

> This document is a running reference bible of the worldbuilding, characters and elements of Alkimia Fables, which is a shared creative world. As such, everything in here is the property of Alkimia Fables - fanfiction and similar work is totally fine, but for anything beyond that, please contact us through our twitter @AlkimiaFables, or one of the co-creators.
> 
> This document is also a 'Choose Not To Warn' experience. However, as a general guideline, AF is recommended for 16 and up overall, and major topics of discussion include:
> 
> -trauma, including childhood sexual abuse, domestic violence, bullying, and systemic bigotry  
> -racism, queerphobia, ableism, sizeism, misogyny, classism, etc.  
> -illegal human experimentation  
> -self-harm and other forms of risky behaviour  
> -drug use  
> -death and grief

_Alkimia_ is a verse very much like our own, yet in its own ways very different; the disenfranchised have powers of their own, faeries flicker between the worlds at their own whim, and the old gods use human squabbles as a spectator sport, placing bets here and there on the next development. The central premise of _Alkimia_ is that all humans are born associated with a single element, much like we are born under star signs or on days of the week. These elements don’t matter beyond points of interest or to fortunetellers – until the person in question undergoes some form of trauma. The trauma has a chance to unlock associated abilities as a form of defense, and the human becomes known as an Elemental. What this means in plain terms is somebody with powers; superpowers, by some metrics, an annoyance by others.

Despite all this, the world has mostly continued as it is. There are a few differences here and there, but the primary directive of most elementals is to stay hidden and safe. Whether they're part of queer communities, radical resistance movements, undocumented immigrant groups or domestic violence survivor networks, survival is far more important than recognition, and the two are often at odds with each other.

> **The Elements**

There are two ‘types’ of Elementals; core and celestial. The **core elementals** are **fire** , **earth, air** and **water**. They are considered core since they are tied to the physical world, and all help calm each other; fire calms earth, earth calms air, air calms water, and water calms fire. **Celestial elementals** on the other hand – **sulfur, mercury** and **salt** \- have powers that are far more strongly tied to the spiritual and emotional world. Sulfur and mercury cannot be calmed by any other element than salt; salt can stabilize any other element, including itself, with enough time and support.

Each element type has a **passive trait** as well as an **active power** ; they are usually the same for each elemental of that type, although there are mutated variants that have rare and sought-after superpowers. Active powers are things that people can _do;_ passive traits are just what it says on the tin – traits or features common to all Elementals of that type.

> FIRE

Fire is considered the most unstable of the core elements, although this is more of a stereotype than a provable truth. Fire elementals can actively control and spontaneously generate fire, often in response to their own emotions. It varies from person to person whether or not they are affected by their own flames, how volatile their powers are in response to their emotions, and how hot their reactionary flames tend to be. Their passive trait is usually that their blood ‘runs hot’ – aka, that their body temperature runs on the extreme high end of normal, again fluctuating with their emotions. Recorded mutations include the ability to see and/or predict the future in flames with varying consistency **(pyromancy),** and, more rarely, **telepresence** ; the ability to perceive and interact with things near fires through one’s own fire, limited in strength by the size of the flame. When fire destabilizes they start lighting uncontrolled flames, but can be calmed by the presence and/or touch of a water elemental.

> WATER

Water elementals are stereotyped as private/introverted and shy. They possess the ability to make themselves invisible, and while it is not usually as obvious as with fire elementals, like with any set of powers, this can also be in response to emotions, especially during high-stress situations – disappearing from sight while feeling humiliated, for example. Variance within their active ability is rare, but some water elementals can remain invisible longer than others – some people compare it to holding their breath, while others can actually forget that they are invisible to others. Water’s passive trait is a fast healing factor, usually on the high end of normal, but occasionally fast enough to garner notice. However, there is a startlingly high percentage of water elementals who – when pushed – discover that they can also **heal others** to some degree or another. The other recorded mutation for Water elementals is an ability to see the past in the water – their own past, and the pasts of others **(remembrancy)**. When Water elementals destabilize, sources of water near them begin to either boil or freeze, depending on the elemental.

> EARTH

Earth elementals are stereotyped as blunt and straightforward. Earth elementals have as their active power the power of telekinesis – moving things with their mind. The strength, range and details of this vary from person to person. Unlike many elementals, however, this power usually does not react to emotions on its own, although its power is often heightened by it. As a passive trait, Earth elementals are stronger than normal for their size. However, some earth elementals possess other abilities such as the ability to mend broken things, leaving obvious coloured seams behind ( **kintsukurosis),** as dubbed by Japanese diaspora in the early 20th century) or to touch and understand the makeup of something ( **technomon)** – ie. knowing what’s in a meal or which wood was used to make a table. When Earth elementals destabilize, they can cause small, localized earthquakes – although the size and intensity can vary.

> AIR

Air is often seen as the social element. Air elementals can fly through unknown means, although how fast and how far depends on the elemental. Some air elementals are able to outstrip hawks and helicopters, while others mostly hover and use their abilities for other, smaller uses. Their main passive trait is a dexterity and flexibility that sometimes expresses itself as double-jointedness or hypermobility. (Due to the nature of elementals, no actual study has been done of the incidence of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome in air elementals, but given EDS's connection to trauma, it's very possible.) Some air elementals possess **clairaudience** (extrasensitive hearing) or the ability to produce a superpowered scream that produces varying effects on those who hear it ( _ **scréch** **ben síde** ** _,_**_ or later, the _cri de guerre)_ When Air elementals destabilize, the air pressure in the nearby area may fluctuate at intense degrees, causing symptoms of decompression sickness and other effects.

> SULFUR

Sulfur elementals, unfortunately, have to deal with a negative stereotype of being manipulative, which works against them in communities more than it should. Their main power is twofold; as telepaths, they can both read and send thoughts, and when 'sending', they can plant suggestions in the subconscious that may or may not be picked up. Most sulfurs shy away from the term mind control, since their powers aren't nearly reliable enough to be called that, but it's often simplified to that. Their passive trait is a photographic or near-photographic memory. As a celestial element, sulfur does not have known mutations - however, given how powerful their base abilities are, this is commonly seen as a Very Good Thing. When sulfur elements destabilize, they project their intrusive thoughts or spirals into the thoughts of those around them.

> MERCURY

Mercury elementals are also victims of negative stereotyping, largely considered to be heartless or cold. Mercuries are the shapeshifters of elementals, able to take any living form or combinations thereof. Some mercuries are faster, more versatile or more creative than others; the weakest mercuries can only copy existing forms and only very slowly, whereas the strongest can take just about any shape they choose. Their passive trait is incredibly long life; while Mercuries can be felled by accident or injury, they rarely fall ill, and age very slowly if at all. Mercury's unstable effect is to warp or unshape the perception of the world around them; that is, people close to them may see, feel, smell or hear reality differently, while the Mercury in question may have no idea what is happening. These changes tend to be small but affecting; a melting banister, for example, or it being night instead of day.

> SALT

Salt elementals serve an odd role for Elementals; stereotyped as antisocial/asocial or loners, they nevertheless play a crucial role in the balancing act. Salts possess the ability to see and speak to ghosts, and often sense their presence as well; the weakest Salts may only be able to detect lingering presence or aura, where the strongest will regularly hold conversations with ghosts, or not be able to block them out at all. However, the most important Salt power is their passive trait; the ability to stabilize any elemental with a touch, presence or conversation. (This only works on the powers end of things; a distraught person won't necessarily be less distraught if the Salt in question is an ass.) It takes a lot to destabilize Salts - however, when it happens, they slip into the Medium, the space between worlds where time works differently.

> **Stabilization**

Stabilization and destabilization is an important but difficult concept when it comes to elementals; powers are deeply connected to emotional state, and as such, somebody's actual control over their powers is related to their control over their emotions, impulses, etc. This works out differently for everybody; for example, somebody whose trauma manifests as fairly simple PTSD may mostly have their powers destabilize in response to triggers, reminders, etc. while somebody with interlinking disorders like ADHD or bipolar may find themselves losing control of their powers during hyperfixations or manic episodes. It's also important to establish that an unstable mind and unstable powers are different things. It's entirely possible for somebody to be in a bad place mentally and their powers to be staying largely controlled; by the same token, a Salt elemental or core elemental stabilizing somebody's powers does not mean that the person in question is therefore Treated and Fine and Okay. The conflation of the two often leads to Salts being treated as unpaid therapists, when many of them aren't qualified for that, and even more so, absolutely are _not_ the right kind of person for that. You don't have to be a nice person to be a Salt elemental.

However, the link between trauma, mental illness and power stability means that in lieu of another elemental to keep powers in check, there are alternatives. Many elementals find that drugs, self-harm, sex and other sources of adrenaline and dopamine can help in the short term, but these have consequences of their own, and don't always work the way you'd want them to. There's also ethical concerns; for example, if powers spin out of control during a casual sex encounter, you're putting somebody else at risk.

Finally, stabilization is _usually_ a passive process, but sometimes, the person being stabilized can resist the process. This is fairly rare for obvious reasons, but does show up from time to time. 


	2. The Faeries

In the world of _Alkimia Fables,_ not _all_ myths are true; but a lot of them are, in one way or another. The political situation of Faerie has been messy for a long time, but by the present day (2016-2020), things have long settled into a certain political landscape.

Broadly speaking, the world of Faerie - used as a somewhat-contested collective noun for the worlds of immortals beyond the mortal plane, as well as immortals living on the mortal plane - is divided into three sections. The Seelie and Unseelie Court are both physical locales and political affiliations, with rulers and ranks within them. The third, known as the Wandering Fae, are labelled as dangerous rabblerousers by the Courts, and are unwelcome in both; as a result, Wandering Fae usually make their homes on Earth. However, the strict binary of the Seelie and Unseelie Court is itself outdated; the terms refer to law and chaos, roughly speaking, and only apply well to Western European faeries. As the world became smaller, however, the Courts began to insist that new faeries - again, a contested group term - affiliate themselves with one Court or the other. As a result, both gods and faeries from non-Western locales are often nominally parts of Courts that they both have nothing to do with and nothing in common with. (A perfect example is the Mayan pantheon; despite their preoccupation with precision and laws, difficulties in translation and articulating concepts in both directions means that they are affiliated with the Unseelie Court, mostly over the issue of sacrifice.)

The Courts are immensely multilingual, but have Anglo-Saxon English as their 'official' language. This was to strike a compromise between the groups who initially formed the Courts in 1100 AD, comprised of the Tuatha Dé Danann (Ireland), the Tylwyth Teg (Wales), the original Seilie and Unseilie Courts (Scotland), the Álfar and Jötnar, and the Vanir (Scandinavian-German). Additionally, there was a small contingent of Hellenic spirits, and a single representative from the gods of Kemet/Egypt. Gaeilge, Gaelic, Welsh, Old Norse and Ancient Greek are still in common use in the courts.

**The Seelie Court (Geard Gesaeligru)**

The Seelie Court is the court of order, light and law - which means something very different for fae than it does for humans. Seelie fae prize commitment to your word, consistency, and patterns. The actual overarching morality or justice of an action is less relevant, although it depends on the faerie in question.

The current queen of the Seelie court is Brigid, the *Banríon éirí Gréine* (BAHN-ree-un Ai-ree GRAY-nay, Queen of the Dawn). Often just addressed as the Banríon, she is one of the three rulers of the Court, and the one currently dominant. The younger ruler, and next in the cycle, is Apollo ( _Phoebus Apollo),_ and the elder is Isis. ( _Heqa Isis)_

Seelie faeries will not go out of their way to harm humans. However, humans who break their laws or offend their honour - knowingly or unknowingly - are subject to them. Furthermore, particularly mischievous Seelie love to trick humans into breaking their laws.

**The Unseelie Court (** **Ungesaeligru Geard)**

The Unseelie Court is the court of chaos, war, death and decay. Notably, this does not make the Unseelie Court evil; it does, however, make them unpredictable, occasionally sadistic, and very often selfish.

The king of the Unseelie Court is Oberon, the Erlkonig. (Erl King, Faerie King). He is one of the three rulers of the Court and the one currently dominant. (Notably, Oberon's past is somewhat shrouded in myth, even for a god. He'll share, eventually.)

Unseelie faeries enjoy playing pranks and tricks on humans, and tend to have a malicious streak, especially when it comes to perceived vengeance. However, for many, it is just a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. In this vein, most of the *changelings* are Unseelie, although there are occasionally Seelie changelings for other reasons. 

**The Wandering Fae (W **ídgilælfe** )**

Faeries - and the occasional deity - who have explicitly chosen not to join one Court or another. These faeries are outside of the protection and the rules of the Courts, which make them both incredibly dangerous and incredibly vulnerable. The official policy of both Courts is to treat Widgilælfe as immediate threats, but especially in cases of defection, it's common for Court faeries to continue friendships while trying to persuade the person in question back "into the fold" for their own safety. 

Despite the claims of some, the Wandering Fae do not have a permanent central structure or political system. 

**Magic**

"Faerie" is an incredibly broad term, but generally speaking, many fae operate on a similar elemental system to humans. The difference, however, is that faerie magic is immediate and inborn, and unlike humans, is not limited to a single element. Faerie magic is generally a combination of two elements, and draws on the conjunction of the two for individual abilities. (For example, incubi and succubi draw on the unique intersection of fire and mercury - it's just that in their case 'fire' means something different.) 

However, faeries also have separate types of magic that usually operate through spells, charms, enchanted objects, etc. These cannot be used by humans with a few exceptions. 

Gods have access to even greater magics, although euhemerized gods (more on that later) often suffer from a reduction of their powers, and sometimes become essentially fae. This is significantly harder to measure, and gets into discussions of 'domains' rather than elements. Also, the gods get very annoyed if you try to Science their magic too much. 


	3. The Medium

The faerie world (or rather, multiple worlds, often with bridges built between them) lives on a separate plane from the mortal world/Earth, although physically very close to it. However, between this world and the world of the Fae, as well as the afterlives, is the world-between-worlds - the **Medium**. The Medium goes by many names - the dream world, limbo, purgatory, the Aether, the Between, the Chaos, etc. - and it looks like various things at various times. At it simplest, the Medium is pure chaos; dreams, dying thoughts, fantasies, stories, etc. all get funneled into it, filling what was empty space. Scraps of unused magic, leftover pieces of creation - you get the idea. 

Faeries can freely travel through the Medium, and usually use it as a mode of transit. Due to the Medium's relationship with the physical world, it can be used as a shortcut from one place to another, as well as the crossing place to faerieland. Time also works differently in the Medium; _usually_ it runs more slowly in the Medium, but patches and parts of the Medium run faster.

Some humans can access the Medium - most notably, Salt elementals. When Salt elemental powers destabilize, they transport themselves into a section of the Medium where they essentially enter a 'dream' in order to process and stabilize. Sometimes this process gets complicated, especially when interacting with faeries or other elementals. 

The Medium is also where ghosts "exist" when still haunting the mortal world, and the veil through which they peer. This is part of how ghosts can get around so quickly, and also why ghosts can't lie; the Medium makes direct lies incredibly difficult, and just about impossible when trying to interact with the mortal world. 

**POCKET WORLDS**

The complex nature of the Medium means that 'pocket worlds' have formed within it, despite its chaotic nature; some of these pocket worlds are more stable than others, and the more stable ones usually have something to latch onto (an arm of Yggdrasil, for example). The most common type of pocket world is one created by somebody with magic in the mortal world, whether by accident or design, out of their own dreams, hopes, and fears. These can sometimes be dreams come true, or nightmarish and claustrophobic - just as many dreams are. 

In a few occasions, pocket worlds have also been forcibly created by the rulers of the Courts or other powerful forces. These usually have reinforced barriers, and can be used as prisons or traps. 

Notably, something occurred in the 1950s or so; after that point, while the Medium was still a void, new technologies began to leave interesting marks. For example, from inside the Medium, it is possible to receive wifi and phone signals, and TV shows, radio programmes, podcasts, etc. are just as much part of the Medium's makeup as dreams and wishes. 

**CRYPTIDS AND MONSTERS**

While gods and fae are separate groups, monsters, cryptids, and other highly individualistic beings are usually (not always) birthed from the Medium. Sometimes this is done on purpose by a vengeful god, but other times, they simply coagulate until they have enough form to materialize. This is the case for the Hydra, the chupacabra, and Slenderman.


End file.
